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Stative or dynamic verbs

Verbs (stative or dynamic)

Stative verbs explain a state situation not an action. Therefore, we usually don't use them in the present continuous tense. State verbs are divided in four categories based on relation.

A – Thinking and idea: agree, believe,doubt, guess, imagine, know, mean, recognize, remember, suspect, think, and understand.

B – Feeling and passion: dislike, hate,like, love, prefer, want, wish.

C – Sensation and understanding: Appear,be, feel, hear, look, see, seem, smell, taste.

D – Ownership and assessment: belong, have, measure, own, possess, weigh.

Important notice

We usually can't use state verbs to build a sentence in present continuous tense because the meaning of the verb is a fact not an action. We can use a few of them in present continuous based on the conditions of the sentence. In this case, the stative verb will change to dynamic verb.

Some stative (state) verbs

Agree, believe, doubt, guess, imagine, know, mean, recognise, remember, suspect, think, understand, dislike,hate, like, love, prefer, want, wish, appear, be, feel, hear, look, see, seem,smell, taste, belong, have, measure, own, possess, weigh...

Some stative or dynamic (action) verbs (based on situation in the sentence)

Have, see, be, taste, agree, appear, doubt, feel, guess, hear, imagine,look, measure, remember, smell, weigh, and wish.

Sometimes verbs have stative (state) or dynamic (action) form. But some verbs can use stative as well as dynamic. It depends on the situation in the text.

Examples:

1 – Do you see any problems with the new plan? (State verb – opinion).

2 – We're seeing Daisy tomorrow afternoon. (Action verb – We're meeting her).

The first sentence describes an idea. Therefore we only can use present simple tense.

In the second sentence the person is dynamically processing a thought about something.Therefore, we can use present continuous tense.

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1. Mike everything about the car accident.

2. Do you I am not good at maths?

3. Would you please about where we will go?

4. Ana exploring North America.

5. I a big noise when I was walking down the Champs Elysées.

6. This building at the corner of the street to my aunt.

7. Mary noisy parties but she is not addicted to them.

8. The Mexican meals very spicy.

9. For the people in the world I “all the best” on the New Year.

10. I the house that I bought last year.

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